Seers of the Serpent
credit to Reaper Verse for the art
[An open Eye inside an Oroboros, with another, smaller Ororboros inside it around the pupil]
What would you do for a better future?
After, everyone knows that this world is not perfect- good people suffer, while bad people thrive. Laws judge without compassion, and the highest forget about the lowest. Some claim that this world is planned by some higher power- but God is distant, and there are no prophets ton carry His words. All of this is just the beginning- this is the World of Darkness, after all. There are monsters in the shadows: vampires drink the blood of the innocents, spirits play with the bodies of men as puppets, witches desecrate all which is holy in their search after power. This is truly not a paradise.
But what if it could be?
What if there was a possibility to create a better future? A future without monsters in the dark, a future were all can live with peace? A world which may not be perfect, but would still be the best possible, were all care about each other and have the freedom to achieve their destiny and fulfill their potential? What if you could know what you need to do in order to make that future true? Would you do it? Could you do it? Would you pay the price and take the sins upon yourself in order to make this world into a better place? And finally, if you decide you could be up to the mission- could you live the rest of your life, knowing you could make a change, yet gave up simply because you weren't strong enough, so now when your daughter is found murdered and the killer is released, when your best friend dies in a car accident, when you are chased down in a dark night by something which shouldn't be exist- it's all your fault?
Don't do it. Don't give up the opportunity.
Join the Oracles.
Past
Many people know about Delphi and its legendary Oracle. Even today, people remember it was a great place in the ancient times, where kings and generals came in order to search after an advice every time they wanted to know which path they should take and they could decide by themselves. Those who knows a bit more about classical mythology and history know that Delphi was a sacred place, and that the Oracle Pythia (the name given to any priestess which served in that role) spoke weird prophesies which were interpreted by the other priests in the temple. They also know that it was a place in which Apollo, the god of Prophesy, was worshiped for slaying the great serpent Python and taking his sacred temple and oracle for himself. Finally, they also know that the Oracle's faith eventually fell as Christianity rose, and that eventually the site was abandoned both by believers and priests.
Yet, not all of this is true. Some are simply mistakes made by researchers which were done out of pure innocence and the difficulty at the attempt to uncover the truth of before two thousands years ago. Others are intentional cover ups, made by the cult of Delphi in order to fool their believers and hide their true nature. And among all of their secrets, there was one secret which they hid ferociously, willing to both kill and die to protect it.
Python is alive.
While they still believed in the story about the battle between Apollo and Python, they told it a bit differently. Python was still been slain by the sun god, but as a snake cheating death was part of its nature. It let its slayer to bury its bones in its sacred soil and claimed the powers of Delphi and the Oracle as its own- not knowing that all of this time the Serpent was watching, waiting patiently. During that time, it poisonous blood bled into Gaia, its mother, giving the gift of prophesy to Apollo's highest priestess while driving her mind crazy. That was the true source for the Oracle's powers, However, eventually the Serpent had enough of playing dead and decided to take back the gifts he granted. He moved his great body and shook his bones, creating a great earthquake which released his venom from the ground, and those making Pythia into a powerless fool. Without the sacred venom, the priesthood has lost its powers.
While the Oracle and her faithful have tried to cling to the site of Delphi for many years even after being abandoned by their uncaring god, eventually, as Christianity grew in power, they had to leave. They hopped to find a new patron or another source of power for the gifts of prophesy, roaming from one place to another. The cult was small during those times, and many of them has lost hope in reclaiming their lost glory. They were a dying breed, they claimed, and without the help of the Serpent they were truly powerless.
All has changed when one night, while they sat before a campfire and looked upon the starry skies, the current Pythia rose on her feet and screamed. While the rest were terrified (for they were an easy prey for the barbarians and robbers without weapon or shield) , Pythia didn't noticed- she was raving, just like in the times the poisoned blood of Python has effected her mind. While it was hard to follow her ecstatic talk (which was harder to understand more than before), eventually the followers managed to interpreted the prophesy- the Vision they decided to follow from now on:
"Low has the Temple Fallen,
Yet Low is where it should Stay;
For Serpents lie bellow Mother
Far from the one who Slay,
Hope is still in the Box,
Free it from the Depths of Despair!
For the God is False, True is the Serpent,
His Gifts are his to Spare!
A Bright Future is Before of you,
If Following the Vision you Dare,
One is the Vision, Many are the Seers,
Gather the Venom to Prosper"
After that, Pythia fell to the ground, exhausted from the powerful vision she has seen- and once she awaken she told her followers about the bright future she has seen- a world without needless pain and sorrow. A world in which all know what they should do and why. A world which may not be perfect, but is the best it could be. She told them that she wished them to help her achieve that dream world, that paradise, although she must tell them a terrible truth: everything they believed in was a lie. They may gain their powers from a being which they name as Python, but that being is not what they thought it was- it is not a snake which was slain by Apollo, but something more ancient, a thing which doesn't belong to their world view of gods and titans, and that if they wish to follow her, they should know what the truth was.
Some of her priests has left after that, not willing to listen to what they named as "mad heresy" while claiming that the Oracle has either made that up in order to hold some semblance of power among her followers or that she has finally lost her mind to the Serpent's venom. The others, however, decided to support the Oracle- either out of faith or because they couldn't see any other future for them. Together, they followed her and her Vision through Europe, gathering the "Venom of the Serpent". At first, they thought it meant to find other places like Delphi which still contain the blood of Python- but they were mistaken. After all, the Gifts are Python's to spare, and his venom has already spread through the all world in his sleep bellow earth. They didn't search for the poison, but after those who were poisoned- they searched after other "Oracles"
Present
As the Oracles has started to gather and taking shape, they understood few things about the world they lived in- that religion, any religion, is false. It is something which binds one into a certain form of thought, giving them false morals to follow and limiting one's potential. Because of the different faiths and religions, the different seers and prophets worked against each other instead of working together, while all of them has shared the same Vision. They also discovered that they were not the only movement in the world who worked to gather all of the Oracles together, for the same prophesy was heard through the all world by many other seers- from the Norse Volva, through the Celtic Vates and up to the Indian Rishi. The only reason Pytha was considered as the leader and the group was named after the pythanic myth was because that was the way the Vision showed them they should do.
Once enough seers, prophets and other fortune tellers has gathered together in the same place, the group was able to move to the so called "second phase"- they all set together and conducted a great ritual, one which connected the minds of them all in order to see clearly into the Vision and find out more about the nature of the elusive Serpent, knowing once and for all if they should follow the Vision or abandon it forever- that is, if they would discover that the Vision was false and that it planned to harm the world instead of helping it. Of course, doing so was dangerous, for channeling so much of Python's venom could destroy both the mind and the body of the oracle, but it was something they had to do.
They were right to be afraid. Out of the dozens of prophets they gathered, more than half of them have died through the ceremony. 75% of the survivors have lost their minds, the sight of so many possible futures was too much for them. Among the survivors, the one to retain most of her personality and sanity was Pytha, who sang joyfully as she was surrounded by the bodies of the dead:
"Great is the Serpent, and Great are His Gifts,
For Truth He spoke, and the Vision is Real!
Don't mourn the Dead, for their Destiny they Fulfilled!
And we have gained the Vision which us would lead!
No Night is Eternal, Follow the Whispers to Greatness!
But the Whispers of the dark should forever be silenced"
The Great Ritual has given two things to the group- first, through the Vision, Pytha has learned how to shared the Gifts of the Serpent. It was a complicated ceremony which was based around purification of the body and soul through the use of snake venom and nerium. Sure, not all people would have survived the poisons, but through the use of the Vision the Oracles could find the ones who had the best chances to overcome it and gain the Gifts of the Serpent. The second thing was a purpose- to find those who are not a part of the Vision and get rid of them, may them be monsters or humans. Thankfully, mostly it looked like their targets were by themselves bad people- murderers, corrupted leaders, abusive parents. Few, however, are innocent- that is, for now. In the future, they would become monsters, or perhaps they would create some kind of dangerous weapon, or even they would simply be in the wrong place in the wrong time, but whatever is the reason- they should die if the Vision is meant to come true. It's for the best.
Slowly and surely, the Seers of the Serpent has survived until the modern days. They still work in the shadows, manipulating history in small ways, knowing that each advice they give, each death they prevent, each monster they kill and each murder they commit is all part of a greater plan. Sure, the world is not perfect, but it is the best there is, and the Oracles believe that it is all thanks to them. Sure, they have no proof, but trying to explain the Vision to someone who have never seen it is like explaining the blue skies to a blind person. Following the Delphic Tradition, their leader is still always a woman and is always named as Pythia, leaving her former name and life behind when she take the mantle of leadership upon herself. She sits in modern Delphi, and is able to direct the all conspiracy by herself, seeing into the future and sending directions to the different members just at time- although in order to do so, she needs seven Oracles who sacrifice their life and mind to her, so she could use them as some sort of super computer to support her mind as they lie in endless sleep. The other members of the conspiracy, however, are free to live their life. Some use their talents for personal gain, working as fortune tellers or advisers. Others prefer to live their life as regularly as possible, hiding any sign for their powers. However, all of them listen to the will of Pytha and the Vision- and when it calls, they would answer.
Future
So- what is the Vision? What is that possible future that makes the Oracles willing to kill and die for?
Simply? It's the best thing you could ever imagine.
It is a world in which there are no accidents, no mistakes. It is a world in which good things happen to good people, and bad things happen to bad people. It is a world where you could go at night as peace and enjoy the stars, without any fear that someone would rob, rape and kill you just because. It is a world where there are no mad gods and faiths which bind people into false morals, and that there is nothing to stop one from fulfilling his true destiny. It is not to say that one doesn't have a free will- but simply that one could be sure that his fate would come true, as long as he doesn't turn against it (in which case, he would be removed from the Vision).
It is a world without monsters in the dark- both human and other. All bloodsuckers has either been submitted or been burned in the sun. The wild werewolves and spirits has been tamed in order to support the Vision, while the witches either work for the benefit of all humanity or are enslaved. It is a world in which serial killers don't exist, for the only murders are done in the name of the Vision. In that world, there are no ghosts, for no souls clings to its former life and is happy to move on to a better existence, and as such there are no ghostwalkers who seek after a second chance. In that world, either the supernatural follows the Vision, or that it is eaten by the Serpent.
It is a world without laws. There is no need for things like a president, king or any other ruler in the same way there is no need for a religion. There are no different countries, for there is no need to such diversity. Everyone are working together in order to create a better world, one in which all are equal and there are no outcasts. A world in which people won't betray each other, where you can trust anyone, knowing that your destiny will be fulfilled. It is a world without fear or despair, a world without the endless suffering of Elpis- for you know what should- will!- happen. It may not be a perfect world, but it is the best one humanity could make.
Sounds good, right?
So stop hesitating and shoot already!
credit to Reaper Verse for the art
[An open Eye inside an Oroboros, with another, smaller Ororboros inside it around the pupil]
What would you do for a better future?
After, everyone knows that this world is not perfect- good people suffer, while bad people thrive. Laws judge without compassion, and the highest forget about the lowest. Some claim that this world is planned by some higher power- but God is distant, and there are no prophets ton carry His words. All of this is just the beginning- this is the World of Darkness, after all. There are monsters in the shadows: vampires drink the blood of the innocents, spirits play with the bodies of men as puppets, witches desecrate all which is holy in their search after power. This is truly not a paradise.
But what if it could be?
What if there was a possibility to create a better future? A future without monsters in the dark, a future were all can live with peace? A world which may not be perfect, but would still be the best possible, were all care about each other and have the freedom to achieve their destiny and fulfill their potential? What if you could know what you need to do in order to make that future true? Would you do it? Could you do it? Would you pay the price and take the sins upon yourself in order to make this world into a better place? And finally, if you decide you could be up to the mission- could you live the rest of your life, knowing you could make a change, yet gave up simply because you weren't strong enough, so now when your daughter is found murdered and the killer is released, when your best friend dies in a car accident, when you are chased down in a dark night by something which shouldn't be exist- it's all your fault?
Don't do it. Don't give up the opportunity.
Join the Oracles.
Past
Many people know about Delphi and its legendary Oracle. Even today, people remember it was a great place in the ancient times, where kings and generals came in order to search after an advice every time they wanted to know which path they should take and they could decide by themselves. Those who knows a bit more about classical mythology and history know that Delphi was a sacred place, and that the Oracle Pythia (the name given to any priestess which served in that role) spoke weird prophesies which were interpreted by the other priests in the temple. They also know that it was a place in which Apollo, the god of Prophesy, was worshiped for slaying the great serpent Python and taking his sacred temple and oracle for himself. Finally, they also know that the Oracle's faith eventually fell as Christianity rose, and that eventually the site was abandoned both by believers and priests.
Yet, not all of this is true. Some are simply mistakes made by researchers which were done out of pure innocence and the difficulty at the attempt to uncover the truth of before two thousands years ago. Others are intentional cover ups, made by the cult of Delphi in order to fool their believers and hide their true nature. And among all of their secrets, there was one secret which they hid ferociously, willing to both kill and die to protect it.
Python is alive.
While they still believed in the story about the battle between Apollo and Python, they told it a bit differently. Python was still been slain by the sun god, but as a snake cheating death was part of its nature. It let its slayer to bury its bones in its sacred soil and claimed the powers of Delphi and the Oracle as its own- not knowing that all of this time the Serpent was watching, waiting patiently. During that time, it poisonous blood bled into Gaia, its mother, giving the gift of prophesy to Apollo's highest priestess while driving her mind crazy. That was the true source for the Oracle's powers, However, eventually the Serpent had enough of playing dead and decided to take back the gifts he granted. He moved his great body and shook his bones, creating a great earthquake which released his venom from the ground, and those making Pythia into a powerless fool. Without the sacred venom, the priesthood has lost its powers.
While the Oracle and her faithful have tried to cling to the site of Delphi for many years even after being abandoned by their uncaring god, eventually, as Christianity grew in power, they had to leave. They hopped to find a new patron or another source of power for the gifts of prophesy, roaming from one place to another. The cult was small during those times, and many of them has lost hope in reclaiming their lost glory. They were a dying breed, they claimed, and without the help of the Serpent they were truly powerless.
All has changed when one night, while they sat before a campfire and looked upon the starry skies, the current Pythia rose on her feet and screamed. While the rest were terrified (for they were an easy prey for the barbarians and robbers without weapon or shield) , Pythia didn't noticed- she was raving, just like in the times the poisoned blood of Python has effected her mind. While it was hard to follow her ecstatic talk (which was harder to understand more than before), eventually the followers managed to interpreted the prophesy- the Vision they decided to follow from now on:
"Low has the Temple Fallen,
Yet Low is where it should Stay;
For Serpents lie bellow Mother
Far from the one who Slay,
Hope is still in the Box,
Free it from the Depths of Despair!
For the God is False, True is the Serpent,
His Gifts are his to Spare!
A Bright Future is Before of you,
If Following the Vision you Dare,
One is the Vision, Many are the Seers,
Gather the Venom to Prosper"
After that, Pythia fell to the ground, exhausted from the powerful vision she has seen- and once she awaken she told her followers about the bright future she has seen- a world without needless pain and sorrow. A world in which all know what they should do and why. A world which may not be perfect, but is the best it could be. She told them that she wished them to help her achieve that dream world, that paradise, although she must tell them a terrible truth: everything they believed in was a lie. They may gain their powers from a being which they name as Python, but that being is not what they thought it was- it is not a snake which was slain by Apollo, but something more ancient, a thing which doesn't belong to their world view of gods and titans, and that if they wish to follow her, they should know what the truth was.
Some of her priests has left after that, not willing to listen to what they named as "mad heresy" while claiming that the Oracle has either made that up in order to hold some semblance of power among her followers or that she has finally lost her mind to the Serpent's venom. The others, however, decided to support the Oracle- either out of faith or because they couldn't see any other future for them. Together, they followed her and her Vision through Europe, gathering the "Venom of the Serpent". At first, they thought it meant to find other places like Delphi which still contain the blood of Python- but they were mistaken. After all, the Gifts are Python's to spare, and his venom has already spread through the all world in his sleep bellow earth. They didn't search for the poison, but after those who were poisoned- they searched after other "Oracles"
Present
As the Oracles has started to gather and taking shape, they understood few things about the world they lived in- that religion, any religion, is false. It is something which binds one into a certain form of thought, giving them false morals to follow and limiting one's potential. Because of the different faiths and religions, the different seers and prophets worked against each other instead of working together, while all of them has shared the same Vision. They also discovered that they were not the only movement in the world who worked to gather all of the Oracles together, for the same prophesy was heard through the all world by many other seers- from the Norse Volva, through the Celtic Vates and up to the Indian Rishi. The only reason Pytha was considered as the leader and the group was named after the pythanic myth was because that was the way the Vision showed them they should do.
Once enough seers, prophets and other fortune tellers has gathered together in the same place, the group was able to move to the so called "second phase"- they all set together and conducted a great ritual, one which connected the minds of them all in order to see clearly into the Vision and find out more about the nature of the elusive Serpent, knowing once and for all if they should follow the Vision or abandon it forever- that is, if they would discover that the Vision was false and that it planned to harm the world instead of helping it. Of course, doing so was dangerous, for channeling so much of Python's venom could destroy both the mind and the body of the oracle, but it was something they had to do.
They were right to be afraid. Out of the dozens of prophets they gathered, more than half of them have died through the ceremony. 75% of the survivors have lost their minds, the sight of so many possible futures was too much for them. Among the survivors, the one to retain most of her personality and sanity was Pytha, who sang joyfully as she was surrounded by the bodies of the dead:
"Great is the Serpent, and Great are His Gifts,
For Truth He spoke, and the Vision is Real!
Don't mourn the Dead, for their Destiny they Fulfilled!
And we have gained the Vision which us would lead!
No Night is Eternal, Follow the Whispers to Greatness!
But the Whispers of the dark should forever be silenced"
The Great Ritual has given two things to the group- first, through the Vision, Pytha has learned how to shared the Gifts of the Serpent. It was a complicated ceremony which was based around purification of the body and soul through the use of snake venom and nerium. Sure, not all people would have survived the poisons, but through the use of the Vision the Oracles could find the ones who had the best chances to overcome it and gain the Gifts of the Serpent. The second thing was a purpose- to find those who are not a part of the Vision and get rid of them, may them be monsters or humans. Thankfully, mostly it looked like their targets were by themselves bad people- murderers, corrupted leaders, abusive parents. Few, however, are innocent- that is, for now. In the future, they would become monsters, or perhaps they would create some kind of dangerous weapon, or even they would simply be in the wrong place in the wrong time, but whatever is the reason- they should die if the Vision is meant to come true. It's for the best.
Slowly and surely, the Seers of the Serpent has survived until the modern days. They still work in the shadows, manipulating history in small ways, knowing that each advice they give, each death they prevent, each monster they kill and each murder they commit is all part of a greater plan. Sure, the world is not perfect, but it is the best there is, and the Oracles believe that it is all thanks to them. Sure, they have no proof, but trying to explain the Vision to someone who have never seen it is like explaining the blue skies to a blind person. Following the Delphic Tradition, their leader is still always a woman and is always named as Pythia, leaving her former name and life behind when she take the mantle of leadership upon herself. She sits in modern Delphi, and is able to direct the all conspiracy by herself, seeing into the future and sending directions to the different members just at time- although in order to do so, she needs seven Oracles who sacrifice their life and mind to her, so she could use them as some sort of super computer to support her mind as they lie in endless sleep. The other members of the conspiracy, however, are free to live their life. Some use their talents for personal gain, working as fortune tellers or advisers. Others prefer to live their life as regularly as possible, hiding any sign for their powers. However, all of them listen to the will of Pytha and the Vision- and when it calls, they would answer.
Future
So- what is the Vision? What is that possible future that makes the Oracles willing to kill and die for?
Simply? It's the best thing you could ever imagine.
It is a world in which there are no accidents, no mistakes. It is a world in which good things happen to good people, and bad things happen to bad people. It is a world where you could go at night as peace and enjoy the stars, without any fear that someone would rob, rape and kill you just because. It is a world where there are no mad gods and faiths which bind people into false morals, and that there is nothing to stop one from fulfilling his true destiny. It is not to say that one doesn't have a free will- but simply that one could be sure that his fate would come true, as long as he doesn't turn against it (in which case, he would be removed from the Vision).
It is a world without monsters in the dark- both human and other. All bloodsuckers has either been submitted or been burned in the sun. The wild werewolves and spirits has been tamed in order to support the Vision, while the witches either work for the benefit of all humanity or are enslaved. It is a world in which serial killers don't exist, for the only murders are done in the name of the Vision. In that world, there are no ghosts, for no souls clings to its former life and is happy to move on to a better existence, and as such there are no ghostwalkers who seek after a second chance. In that world, either the supernatural follows the Vision, or that it is eaten by the Serpent.
It is a world without laws. There is no need for things like a president, king or any other ruler in the same way there is no need for a religion. There are no different countries, for there is no need to such diversity. Everyone are working together in order to create a better world, one in which all are equal and there are no outcasts. A world in which people won't betray each other, where you can trust anyone, knowing that your destiny will be fulfilled. It is a world without fear or despair, a world without the endless suffering of Elpis- for you know what should- will!- happen. It may not be a perfect world, but it is the best one humanity could make.
Sounds good, right?
So stop hesitating and shoot already!
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